Staff file photo by Ben BentonJackson County, Ala., Commission Chairman Matthew Hodges.SCOTTSBORO, Ala. - With a vote looming in August, two more public meetings are set in the Jackson County, Ala., towns of Skyline and Pisgah to vet a proposed 1-cent sales tax hike to balance the county's books.
But some voters don't see a warm welcome for the hoped-for hike.
Scottsboro resident Carol England, grabbing a bite Tuesday at the Five Points Dairy Bar on East Willow Street, said tax rates in Jackson County towns are steep already.
"It's just too high," said England. She said adding a penny to the sales tax would push some municipal rates into double digits, hurting local retailers and their customers. England doesn't believe voters will support the increase on the Aug. 18 ballot.
IF YOU GO
A community meeting is set for 6 p.m. CDT on July 6 at the Pisgah School gymnasium on County Road 61. Another community meeting is set for 6 p.m. CDT on July 20 at Skyline Town Hall on state Highway 79.
County Commission Chairman Matthew Hodges admits one point of resistance for city residents and business owners is the fact that half of Jackson County's 12 towns - Woodville, Section, Hollywood, Dutton, Bridgeport and Scottsboro - now have a 3-percent sales tax. Throw in another penny and the 6 percent countywide education rates and the total tax burden would be more than 10 percent.
Hodges says many Alabama towns have a total rate of 10 percent now.
At Hammer's, a regional department store across from the Jackson County Courthouse, assistant manager Sandra Barnes said people believe local sales tax rates are high, but she understands the county has a financial dilemma.
"People already talk like we're higher than everybody else around," Barnes said. "But it's probably needed. It'll be a good thing if it's used wisely."
Barnes believes voters won't go for a higher sales tax rate, but she doesn't think it will hurt the store if they do.
"We'll always have people who travel here to go to Hammer's because they like us," she said. "Our local customers will keep coming back."
The proposed penny increase would generate an estimated $3.3 million a year to offset a $1 million to $2 million deficit, officials say. County revenues have declined and the Tennessee Valley Authority reduced its payments in lieu of taxes, and the county has not been able either to restore the money from other sources or trim its budgets to match its revenue.
The county general fund now gets no share of sales collected locally. Revenue is derived mostly from property tax, so the penny boost, if approved by voters, would be the first to go into the county general fund, according to officials.
Contact staff writer Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or twitter.com/BenBenton or www.facebook.com/ben.benton1 or 423-757-6569.